Apparatus for refuse incineration and disposal



April 14, 1931. H. 1.. cowLEs 1,800,817

APPARATUS FOR REFUSE. INCINERATION AND DISPOSAL Filed Feb. 2 8, 1928 2Sheets-Sheet 1 U VVENT OR.

BY M

ATTORNEY April 14, 1931'. H. 1.. COWLES APPARATUS FOR REFUSEINCINERATION AND DISPOSAL Filed 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

AQ ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 14, 1931 HARRY L. COWLES, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

APPARATUS FDR REFUSE INGINERATION AND DISPOSAL Application filedFebruary 28, 1928. Serial No. 257,558.

This invention relates to apparatusfor refuse incineration and disposaland particle, larly to apparatus of this type which is intended forindoor use. The main object of C the invention is to provide an improvedapparatus for incinerating' refuse which is of licient in operatioin inwhich the parts are few and simple, and are also adapted to beeconomically manufactured.

9 In carrying out my invention Iprovide a casing which preferablycontains one or more refuse compartments and an upright flue adjacentthe compartment or compartments. If two refuse compartments are employed5 said flue is preferably arranged between the two compartments andadjacent each of them and ordinarily said flue extends across theinterior of the incinerator.

My invention is especially adapted to incinerators in which a line ofthe above type is formed by upright walls preferably apertured and wherethe flue wall and compartment wall are arranged asa common wall betweenthe flue and compartment and wherein the apertured walls are in the formof grids. One

object of my invention consists in providing means whereby the grid orgrids are sup ported by means of or on the end walls of the casing ofthe incinerator. Another object of my invention is to provide an.inclined wall in each refuse compartment opposite to the wall forming awall of the fine, and also to provide means whereby said inclined wallor walls are pivoted so that they can be oscillated by means of a lever,levers or other suitable means placed on the outside of the casing sothat the ashes from incineration can be dropped into the ash pan. Thesaid inclined walls serve the purposes of floor men1- bers of therespective compartments and are preferably formed with elongatedapertures arranged upwardly. A further object is to provide an improvedcrown sheet at the up M per part of the casing. And still another objectis to provide improved means to con trol the admission of refuse intothe incinerating compartments.

The means I prefer to employ for accomplishing the above objects,together with other advantageous and novel features of my improvedrefuse incineration and disposal apparatus, are illustrated in thedrawings accompanying and forming part of this specification, and inwhich,

Figure 1 is a vertical section of one form of my improved incineratorand taken on the line 11 as shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the apparatus taken on the line 2-2 ofFig. 3 and at right angles to the section of Fig. 1.

s Fig. 3 is a horizontal section of the apparatus taken on the line 3-3of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a top plan of this form of the invention with parts brokenaway.

Fig. 5 is a front elevation of a portion of the upper part of this formof the invention.

Fig. 6 is a vertical section of a refusedisposal and incinerationapparatus also cmbodying my improvements, and

Fig. 7 is a detail horizontal section of a portion ofone end of a fluegrid 17.

Like characters of reference refer to like parts in all the figures ofthe drawings.

Referring first to Figs. 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings, the numeral 2indicates the casing of the form illustrated in said figures and saidcasing is preferably rectangular in horizontal section and composed ofouter walls 3 and inner ells 4. The casing includes two opposite endwalls, preferably inner end walls such as 5, which are particularlyemployed for a purpose about to be described.

The outer part of the casing in this form of-the apparatus has atopportion such as (l which is preferably provided with an opening forpassing in refuse and which is indicated by 7. There a lid 8 preferablyhinged at 9 to the top portion 6. In this form of the invention theouter portions of the top portion (tare substantially horizontal andpreferablythere is a raised rim 10-. around the opening 7.

The inner casing includes the before mentioned walls 4 and 5 and also acrown sheet suchas 11 made preferably in two parts and having-inclinedwalls 12 at the front and sides. The forward parthas a charging opening13 on the edges 13 of which the depending portion 14 0f the lid 8normally rests. The rearward portion contains the FIT a...)

; tally disposed cover poi'tion'such inner portion 16 of the smokeoutlet 16. There is a space 6 between the top portion 6 and the fiatpart 11' of the crown sheet and said space communicates with the space 4surrounding the inner walls of the casing. The space 4' has an opening 2at the base of the casi'ng and'air camflow'through said opening, upthe'space' l to the space G and thence into the smoke outlet 16. Thisdraft of air cools the outer walls ofthe casing during operation of theincineratoran'dalso tends to prevent smoke-from escapingunder the edgesof the lid 8.

The casing'2 HlaYTCOIliEtllIl10116101 more.

refuse compartments and in the form herein shown, it contains two suchcompartments as indicated by I 15. In -this for'mi the said compartmentsare oppositely disposed with an upright flue structure between them. The

said flue-structure preferably consists oftwo J refusecompartmentseachsuch grid forming a wall of the compartment-adjacent toit.

The flue structure is apertured at the bot-V tom part so that'preferably the fiue 18 i'sfe'n-v tirely open as--at:19,-andthere is ahorizonas 20, preferably arcuate in" cross'section. The 4 grids 17' eachcontain top openings 21' extending horizontally at the upper part butbelow the cover20and across the grid. 'A' horizontal bar 21d bounds thelowerpart I""'said' openings 21,"and*below said bar are preferablyarrangeda series of "vertical bars '21 72 wfith vertical 3178113111138216 b'GWGQU them. 7 The said b ars 21?) are joined to altm'er hori-.zo'ntal bar'25 which eirtends towards the interior of theadjaceilt'refuse compartment 15. In the opposite side of each of saidoompartmentslb is a 'wallsuchas 2-2,in'clined botlf to the grid 17 andto the horizontal. In the form herein show-n thewall-"22 is 'in'the formofa grid or apertured' walland has a substantially horizontal lower.part 26 which formspart of the floo-r' offitsrespectivecompart'm eiit15. Preferably thereare upwardly extendingbars 22?) "which join ahorizontal pm 220 at the upper part of i said} gr'id. As

' thus ifo rmed, Iflte'rin said members inclined floor-grids and I havepreferably provided 7 suitable pivoting means whereby said grid or gridscan be turned backand forth from are supported at each end by means ofsaid- 'casing end "walls 5,"'and this may be accomplishedin any suitableway. Preferably I provide projections suchas 23 on said end wallsand-for convenience I place one or more of such projections adjacent theupper part of'eachsuch grid, preferably placing two of the'm'spacedap'art to supportthe -'grid"on each side. Also'I place one such'proj ection such $1823 underthe en'dof suchigrid, on

each end wall, and preferably four 'more' projections 23 spaced apart,two' each-side of the grid end, somewhat above the projection 23. Thuseachxgri'd will be suitably alined and supportedwat each 'end and may beassembledby sliding it down between said pro ections. Figs. 1and13jthegrids117whave portions 25 whichiprojecti inwardly so as: toformparts of the floors of the compartments-l5. The inclined Jgri'd orgrids 22 have'corresponding portions 26'nearly meeting the portions-'25lea'vinga space 250 between them for the purpose of clearance *aswill'be neededwhen operating said grid or grids 22' inthe 'manuer'nowto'bedescribed. Each grid'17 is placed imposition by sliding it down betweenairnpper '1 pair of thecprojections '23 and-a lowerrp'air'of' the same,at each'end'of the incinerator, until'it 'rests'on itsrespectivelowermost shpportingi p'orjections 23.

The hereinbefore mentioned inclined walls, olffgllClS 22 beingfurnished-withthe'trunnions '24 by which' theyr are supported and jour-nailed in the bearings240rare adapted to be turnedwhen it is desiredto dump out the ashes from the compartments 15-- into the ash pan 27.The trunnion-at the'front part of the incinerator engagesa-sleeve member28 placed in the casing 'wallsat that part'and there is a lever'28secured towitoutside the casing'and by means of it the grid: 22can' beturned back 'and' forth when desired. There is a notched projection 29on saicl inember 28 which is adapted to be engaged by the latch 30 sothat t-he'gri-d 22 can -be-held in its inoranal'position as showninFig. 1. v V

There is'an elongated gas burner 31' placed below the flue 18,"supported 'by-meanso'nthe casing end walls by lugs 31-, arid thereisa gassupply:pipe- 32' connected tothe burner together withanairmi-X'era33. pilot light 3% is also connected to theigasvsupplyrpipe adjacent'to the burner 31' for 'use'when' lighting the same.

@ I have also provided. improved vmeans to As shown in the drawings'in'control and regulate the filling of the compartments 15 with refuse bygravity so as to provide an improved method of drying the refuse and sothat or other fuel for the incinerator can be economized. The said meansare preferably placed below the opening 7 but higher than thecompartments 15 in the space 15 which 1 term the combustion chamber, andin the forms illustrated said means or a portion of the same are placedover the flue cover 20. The said means preferably include a device topermit one of the compartments to be filled with refuse separate fromthe other, after which the controlling device is shifted so that thesecond compartment is filled with refuse. Preferabl the firstcompartment is not lighted until the refuse has remained in it a shorttime so that the draft of air through theflue will dry the refusesomewhat. If the gas is then lighted the refuse will soon catch fire andthe can then be turned off in a short time thus resulting in a saving ofThe means for controllin the filling of the conuiiartments with refuseconsist preferably of a plate such as having trunnions. or short shafts37 by which it is pivoted in the end walls 5 of the casing 2. One of thetrunnions 37 extends through to the outsideof the casing wall 3 and isfurnished with a lever 38 by means of which the device is operated.llhere is a segment 39 having three notches ll) and there is a slidablemember 11 which can be moved into and out of said notches so that thelever 38 and with it the plates 3Gcan be held in any one of threepositions as required. Ordinarily one position is provided for fillingthe right hand compartment, one for filling the left hand compartmentand one intermediate position, where both compartments can be filled atthe same time. The plate or deflecting member 36 I sometimes term therefuse gate or controller. The said device may also be used in guidingthe flow of and combustion products from the title 18. W hen the plate36 is turned verti- (rally. the gases and combustion products can flowfreely at both sides of the plate. If the plate is inclined to eitherside the rate of combustion and the gas flow is retarded according tothe angle of the plate.

In the form of the invention shown in Fi 6, my improved apparatus isillustrated as a built-in type and it is preferably shown below a flueor air-shaft such as 14i in a refuse disposal apparatus, said flue beingprovided with suitable openings such as 45 at the several floors of anapartment or other building in which it may be placed. The said openingsare ordinarily provided with suitable means for closing them when not inuse. The incinerator indicated by 1, its casing by 2, its outer walls by3, its inner walls by 1- and its inner end walls by 5. The two refusecom- 55 partments are denoted by 15, the upright flue between them by18,the flue grids by 17, the inclined floor grids by 22 and the shaftsthereofby 24. The gate or refuse controller is indicated by 36 and theoperating lever therefor is not shown in this figure but it will besimilar to the form for the type shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 5 together withthe notched segment and member on the lever to engage with the segment.i

In this form of the apparatus the grids 17 are secured to the end walls5 of the casing 2 by means of lugs r projections 48 formed on the gridsthemselves, and there are bolts 19 passing through said projections 48and screwthreaded into the said end walls 5.

In either form of the invention shown herein, when it is desired to makeuse of the refuse gate 36 in filling the incinerator with refus thelever 38 is turned as shown in Fig. for instance, so that only the lefthand refuse compartment will be filled with refuse. \Vhen thiscompartment is filled, the

lever 38 is moved on releasing the member 41 and the gate is shifted tothe opposite position, and the lever 38 will be on the left hand sidewith the member 41 engaging the left hand notch of the segment and therefuse will then drop only into the right hand com partment- 15. l/Vhenthe refuse in the left hand compartment is dried sufliciently so that itwill burn without uneconomical consumption of gas, the burner 31islighted by first lighting the pilot light 34 and thenturning the cook35 of the burner 31. The gas is permitted to burn until it is plain thatthe refuse will continueto. burn without gas and the gas is then shutoff. The heat from the compartment now operating will assist in dryingthe refuse collecting in the other compartment and alternate burningscan be made and the amount of gas greatly reduced. Vl hen very rapidincineration. is desired the gas will be kept burning throughout theoperation.

What I claim is 1. A refuse incinerator having two refuse compartmentsand embodying a casing having two end walls, grid supporting and aliiuing means in two sets on each of said end walls, and a flue structure inthe casing having two substantially straight upright grids each held byits upper and lower parts respectively at each end by said gridsupporting means on said casing end walls, each grid forminga wall ofone ofsaid refuse compartments and also said flue between the same, saidgrid and flue each bounded at its ends by the respective casing endwalls. i

2. A refuse incinerator having two refuse compartments and embodying acasing having two sid-e a'nd two end walls, a. flue structure in saidcasing having an upright flue and includingtwo upright, straight,apertured walls, said flue walls alsoforming walls both of the flue andsaid compartments, and

can-pass, said flue and said apertured walls bounded at their ends bythe casing end 'walls, one of said casing sidewalls and said casing endwalls respectively forming the remaining walls of said compartments, andmeans on the casing end walls forsupporting and alining said "flue.structure.

4. "Arrefuse-incinerator having two refuse compartments and embodying acasing having two end-walls, and'a two part flue structure-extendingacross the incinerator between the=refuse compartments each flue partembodying an uprightapertured wall supported and alined on the casingend walls, and an upright flue between said :apertured walls and; upwhich combustionproducts can; pass, each of said upright apertured fluewalls also forming a wall of one ofsaid compartments.

:5. A refuse incinerator :having two refuse compartments and embodying acasing having two side and two end walls, a flue structurein said casingbetweensaid refuse compartments-andhaving two sidewalls and a fluerbetween them up which combustion prod- .ucts can'pass, parts of the casingend walls forming the flue end walls, the flue side walls beingaperturedand each: rejspectively forming a side-wall of the ad acentrefuse com partment, casing side walls and the remaining portions of thecasing-endwal-ls forming the remaining walls of the refuse compartments,means on the casing end walls for supporting said flue structure, andmeans, below the flue-for drying and igniting the contents of saidcompartments.

6. A ref-use incinerator having; two refuse compartments and embodying acasing having two end walls, and atwo part flue structureextendingacrossthe incinerator between said refuse compartments, saidflue structure supported and alined by means on said casing end walls,each flue part embodying an upright grid pendently of the, other -flue 5part.

' 7. An'incineratorhavingga refusecompartment and embodying'ascasingkhavinga side -wall,zannpright apertured wall which forms a"wall. of ;therefuse compartment and also edfzaaneupr-ight-fiueextending across the i-ncinerator, said apertured wall havingahoriadapted to he slid into place inde-V zontal lower :part extendingtoward ":the

refuse-compartment, and-raninclinedwwalL at i-ngea casing having; asidewall, an upright i grid forming one wall of the refuse compartmentand 'also one wall of an upright flue extendingacr-oss' the incineratoradjacent the compartment and up which-products ofcombustioncan pass,said grid having a plurality of vertical bars joined to- :a horizontallower bar turnedtowards the-interior of the compartment; and an inclinedgrid adjacent the casing sidewall and having avpl'urality-ofupwardlyextending bars joined toa lower horizontal bar which extendstoward andv is normally adjacent thehorizontal bar of the firstmentioned grid, said two lower bars forming the lower parts of the-floorof said compartment.

19., refuse incinerator having two oppositely disposed refusecompartments and embodyinga casing having two side and two end walls atwo'part flue structure .in the casing between said compartments, eachflue part embodying an upright aperturedwall, and a' fine between themup which combustionprode ucts canv pass, w said-fluestructure havingan

